OCTOBER 1 was International Coffee Day, but really everyday should be a day to celebrate the dark and energising beverage. For many of us, our days don’t truly begin until we’ve had our cup of morning coffee, with some of us needing an extra jolt (or two) over the course of the day.
But whatever your process of making your morning cup, or your usual order at your favourite spot, there’s always more to explore in the wide world of coffee, a substance that has been consumed for its various beneficial properties for hundreds of years.
Here’s a run-through of five types of unique coffee drinks that you likely have not experienced before:
illy Caffè
Led by the third generation in this family business, Italian-founded illy Caffè is recognised for the high quality and velvety taste of its coffee, a blend made of nine varieties of pure Arabica that millions of people use every day, either from their outlets themselves or by buying beans to prepare at home.
The illycrema is a sweet (but not obnoxiously so) and creamy concoction, a take on illy’s espresso that is whipped and cooled to create a creamy, rich and indulgent treat.
Artelier
The method and length of roasting give coffee beans their distinctive flavour and colour – the darker beans are considered bolder, and the lighter beans are more intensely flavoured.
Artelier Coffee is a must-try because of how they experiment with their roasting process. Japanese master barista and coffee consultant Masahiro Aoki heads the brand and taps on his world-class skills to create expertly crafted drinks.
By pouring hot, flavourful espresso over extremely cold milk – a cup of ‘dirty’ is made. Artelier comes up with different ‘Dirty’ specialty coffees every month like Dirty (Latte), Dirty Houjicha, Dirty Matcha and more.
Tsutaya Books
There’s nothing like enjoying a nice cup of coffee while reading a good book and you can have this experience at Pavilion Bukit Jalil’s Tsutaya Books, which opened just earlier this year and is the Japanese chain’s first store in Southeast Asia.
The 31,000 sq ft bookstore is packed with about 250,000 books, and has enough space for a cozy in-store café offering some unique caffeinated concoctions. Their selection of freshly brewed coffees can be paired with their Autumn Special Mont Blanc Dorayaki – a Japanese pancake filled with sweetened chestnut cream.
HWC Coffee
HWC Coffee recently unveiled a new seasonal specialty coffee bean, Neroli, which scored 93 points under the Coffee Review, one of the leading coffee guides in the world by coffee sommeliers. This makes it the highest-rated coffee bean carried by HWC Coffee. The drink has honey and floral notes, with some tart fruit notes and rich aromatic woody undertones.
CO2 Coffee
Maybe you want more than just a caffeinated pick-me-up, and what could be more elevated than a coffee cocktail? CO2 Coffee Bar – the first coffee bar in Malaysia – serves coffee cocktails, or "cofftails" as they call them, with a fun mix of caffeine, fruits, smoky spices and herbs.
For example, the Young-Man-Go is a blend of cold brew coffee with condensed milk and lemon juice, topped with rosemary and fresh mango. It’s a refreshing and balanced flavour that doesn’t cover up the coffee aspect of it all. – The Vibes, October 16, 2022
